‘He is fine?’ viewers wonder as President Joe Biden takes the stage with a ‘husky’ voice to start debate with Trump

Viewers are struggling to hear President Joe Biden as he faces former President Donald Trump in the first presidential debate before the 2024 presidential election.

Thursday night’s event marked the first time in history that a sitting US president faced a former US president.

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But the first thing many viewers seemed to notice was the volume of the candidates’ voices — especially President Biden’s.

“We put things back together,” after Trump’s presidency, Biden said in a low, hoarse voice to begin the conversationadding that things were “just chaos” under Trump’s watch.

The president has reportedly been unwell with a slight cold in recent weeks.

“I don’t know what he said at the end of that sentence. I also don’t think he knows what he said,” Trump said during his response.

Some of the millions of viewers wrote similar comments on social media.

“Biden so fucking old haha. Is he okay?? haha,” J (@jayptomas) a viewer immediately commented on X.

A White House official shared during the debate that Biden was evaluated by his doctor at Camp David this week and tested negative for Covid and was diagnosed with a cold, according to CBS News.

Some other spectators quickly agreed.

“Biden’s voice is gone,” another user X posted.

“AND Joe Biden whispering?” asked a third.

Thursday’s presidential debate is the first in the lead-up to the 2024 presidential election and represents a significant shift from typical debate formats.

Unlike all previous presidential debates since 1988, tonight’s event was organized by CNN rather than the Commission on Presidential Debates — and each candidate’s microphone will be muted when the other speaks.

CNN Jake Tapper and Dana Bash will moderate the discussion, both veteran journalists who have overseen several primary and national election debates in the past.

Bash and Tapper vowed to do their best to avoid creating another “shit show,” as Bash dubbed the first presidential debate of 2020.

That debate, hosted by veteran then-Fox News host Chris Wallace, famously devolved into chaos as the candidates constantly interrupted each other — and the moderator — and hurled insults at each other.

VOTERS AT EYE

The President’s health has been a hot topic during his presidency, as voters wonder whether the 81-year-old will be able to stay healthy for another term.

His health may be playing a role in his low approval ratings, which began falling almost immediately after he took office in January 2021, according to an ongoing poll conducted by Reuters-Ipsos.

Entering the debate, Biden currently has a 36% approval rating – the lowest in two years.

Trump also had a low approval rating at the end of his first term – just 34% when he left office following the January 6 Capitol riots.

The poll concluded that the economy dominated voters’ concerns for weeks, overtaking extremism and immigration to first place.

MORE ON YOUR MINDS

The presidential candidates are expected to cover a wide range of political issues during tonight’s debate.

In the first hour of discussion, Biden and Trump already addressed internal issues relating to the economy, the right to abortion and employment.

They also investigated foreign policy concerns in the ongoing wars between Russia and Ukraine and between Israel and Hamas.

Biden redoubled his support for Ukrainian and Israeli forces, while Trump asserted that the President was not adequately helping either our allies or ourselves.